If you don’t ask, you certainly don’t get. That’s the reasoning behind a wish list city officials plan to bring to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other federal agencies in the near future.

Mayor Phillip West emphasized the projects included in the proposal &uot;aren’t set in stone.&uot;

&uot;This is just something on paper Š to start from,&uot; West said. &uot;There may be other projects we discuss. We just want to find out in what ways they can help us.&uot;

West said he has a contract within the department &045; Natchez native Clyde Thompson &045; who is helping set up meetings with officials from USDA and other federal departments to hear the wish list.

As it’s now written, the 12-page, $30 million list of proposed projects (see sidebar) for which the city may seek federal assistance is far-reaching, including everything from economic development, recreation and arts programs to housing for retirees.

One proposal would develop a &uot;model&uot; neighborhood to serve as a testing ground for programs to improve the lives of children and families.

Others include a center to help local agencies get grants and other government help and projects to mentor small businesses, rehab buildings as office space and develop full-service luxury housing for the elderly.

Many of the projects, including the grants center, the small business mentoring program and the performing arts center, would be established working with Alcorn State University.

Alcorn President Dr. Clinton Bristow said he and West have met several times to discuss their visions for the city and for Alcorn. &uot;We’ve merged our thinking, which led to this collaboration,&uot; Bristow said.

Bristow often notes that a large part of Alcorn’s mission is to assist in the development of the surrounding area &045; what he calls the &uot;communiversity&uot; concept.

&uot;That means we want to use our resources Š to not only grow the university but also the surrounding area Š southwest Mississippi and northeast Louisiana,&uot; Bristow said.

West and aldermen will attend the National League of Cities starting Friday and were planning on presenting the full wish list to the USDA during that trip.

However, West said Wednesday city Grants Coordinator Brett Brinegar and USDA officials are still fine-tuning the proposal, so it won’t be ready to present this week.

&uot;So we may have preliminary meetings this time around and then set up further meetings in the future,&uot; probably in mid-April, West said.